Chavez has quietly helped usher the Astros' next wave of young pitchers to the majors with his steady presence at Class AAA New Orleans. So it is no surprise that several scouts are tracking Chavez this spring, knowing he is out of options and must be put through outright waivers before being sent back to New Orleans to start the season.

"I don't think about what will happen to me this year," Chavez said. "I'm just thinking about doing my work right here and showing everybody I can play without anything weighing on me."

Regardless of what happens, Chavez has a long list of admirers on the Astros' pitching staff.

"You're very comfortable with a guy with that amount of experience behind the plate," Pete Munro said. "He's a very good receiver. If it's not (Ausmus), he's who I want behind the plate. He calls a very good game, knows what he's doing and definitely throws well."

Robertson, one of the top candidates for the fifth spot in the Astros' rotation, believes in Chavez so much that he brags about never shaking off the pitches Chavez requests. That's a tremendous endorsement from the Pacific Coast League's pitcher of the year last season at New Orleans.

"It's been a luxury that he has major-league defensive skills," general manager Gerry Hunsicker said. "He's been great to have waiting in the wings in the event that something happened at the major-league level.

"This is one position you can't sacrifice defense for offense. From that standpoint, we've been fortunate to have a guy like this."

"No matter what level you're talking about in the development process, including the major-league level, a catcher is a critical component in the pitcher's development," Hunsicker said. "When a pitcher has trust in the catcher, it makes his job a whole lot easier because he's not always second-guessing and wondering if he's calling the right pitch."

Fellow catchers also have developed a healthy respect for Chavez, 30.

"He throws well, takes pride in his defense and cares about his pitchers, and those are all very important qualities in a catcher," Ausmus said. "The best gauge of a catcher a lot of times is how the pitching staff feels about you.

"The pitchers coming up from New Orleans the last couple of years say that he not only performs well, but they have told me and others that they enjoy throwing to Raul."

Barring an injury to Ausmus or backup catcher Gregg Zaun, Chavez likely will be with a different organization this season. Astros officials realize Ausmus, who has ushered Roy Oswalt and Wade Miller into prominence, is too valuable to be traded.

Moreover, Ausmus has a no-trade clause. Zaun, who is a valuable switch-hitter off the bench, is in the final year of his contract.

Under normal circumstances, the Astros could expect to keep Chavez on the New Orleans roster to help with depth. But he is out of options, meaning he cannot be sent to the minors without first being put on waivers.

Premier catching prospect John Buck, a slugger who is also strong defensively, is pegged to start the season at New Orleans.

A few clubs are looking for catching help, and Chavez would definitely provide an above-average player behind the plate.

"He's the best guy I've ever thrown to in the minors," Lidge said. "You don't ever have to worry about the runners with him. When runners are on, you know he'll take care of business."

Hunsicker says Chavez probably would have established himself in the majors by now if he could hit better.

"I know my defense is real good," says Chavez, who owns a .253 average in the majors with one home run and seven RBIs in 34 games spread over parts of five seasons. "I need to work on my hitting. That's what I need to adjust to more, but I put a lot of attention on my defense."